Beer: Reviews & Ratings

look: Deep dark, nearly opaque brown. Some cola highlights barely peek around the edges when held to light. Fairly full mocha head on the pour that mostly recedes, but lingers around the rim.smell: cocoa, vanilla, and subtle roasty char. Delicate oak and bourbon. Added all up a damn fine and decadent nose.taste: All the flavors of the nose. Blooms into a rich full taste and the finish is a slightly spicy bitterness. overall: A work of art. (446 characters)

A- Split four ways from the 500ml with a pitch black body and a small light mocha cap. The head ends up as a foamy belt and lacing is mostly spotty with a few sheets.

S- A bit more tame than the other variants I have had out of this series; at least at this juncture. Mostly what I get is a chocolatey roast malt profile and a smoothed out, semi-oxidized Bourbon barrel profile. Time seems to have smoothed this out.

T- Large Bourbon barrel similar to what I find in the other variants with a wet and smoothed out woody oak flavor, peppery spicy whiskey and plenty of vanilla. Chocolate truffles, cocoa nibs and charred grains from the classic base brew. Somewhat sweet.

MF- Thick and slick oily body with a certain lack of carbonation but nowhere near flat. Texture is slightly foamy and creamy. Slightly hot finish.

Just seems to lack some of the complexity I find in the other ones. Not directly comparable but its unavoidable. Thick chocolate and a bold barrel. (993 characters)

Big pillowy head that dissipates well leaving nice lacing.smell is amazing with great bourbon notes of oak and vanilla. Smooth. Taste is not as bourbon, with almost no heat. Notes of vanilla and light, creamy chocolate milkshake. Mouthfeel is a little light overall, with a little bit of a disappointing finish. Not sweet and not dry. 12% ABV is really well hid, with an amazingly smooth finish. Rather uninteresting for the price. Great beer, but won't spend $21 for this again. (479 characters)

Looked the part of a big stout and smelled hints of bourbon slight chocolate.Tasted normal big stout flavors, nothing unusual and very agreeable.The body was way to light for what I was expecting. (198 characters)

Deepest black color with a thin light caramel head with short retention.Aroma with notes of licorice, dark fruits, caramels, cocoa powder and coffee.Elegant flavor with notes of licorice, lots of red and black fruits, milder Bourbon, guaraná, vanilla, coconut, oak, raisins, cocoa powder and dark chocolate, mild anise and light charcoal.Quite dry aftertaste with a long lasting roasted note.Full body with appropriate carbonation. Alcohol of 11.9% is felt, but in harmony with the overall beer.Well balanced and complex Imperial Stout, though the bourbon and hops were more on the undertone. Very chocolaty, nutty and coconutty. Great beer. (647 characters)

On-tap 11/9/2014 at Doherty’s East Ave Irish Pub, in Pawtucket, RI served in a snifter glass.

A: The beer is a deep dark brown color, with a large foamy brown head that fades very slowly and leaves a thick lace on the glass.

S: The aroma contains bourbon, roasted malts and chocolate.

T: The taste starts out sweet with flavors of chocolate and bourbon that are quickly followed by a hearty roasted malt character. The hops presence is very mild as it should be in this type of beer and provides a very good balance. The after-taste is slightly sweet.

O: Very tasty, goes down dangerously easily, slightly filling, well-disguised strong kick, excellent representation of style, this is a very nice big aged stout to sip on for a very long time. (851 characters)

Got this one from Rutager in a box this summer. Thanks again for all the goodness man!

From a 500ml cork and caged bottle into a snifterDrank this beside the XIV for comparative purposes

APPEARANCE: Clear brown/black pour yields a two finger, medium looking, foamy, light tan head with very good retention. Black body with no carbonation at all. Head slowly fades to a splotchy wisp. A faint wisp remains the whole way leaving some splotchy dots of lacing down the glass. Less carbo and less lacing than the XIV.

TASTE: Bourbon, oak, with sweet cream notes up front. More bourbon and oak at the swallow with a big and lingering finish of oak, vanilla, coconut, bourbon, some bitter pure chocolate and roasted coffee notes. Mostly barrel and alcohol with lots of sweet vanilla and coconut flavors, but some nice roasted and bitter flavors from the base beer under it all. Really nice. Same as XIV as well.

PALATE: Slightly lighter body with higher levels of carbonation. Creamy enough, goes down okay with a slight scratch at the swallow and finishes rather sticky. Some heat lingers. Perhaps a touch heavier than the XIV.

OVERALL: This stuff is really good. The feel could be beefed up perhaps, which would give it a stronger foundation, but this is a minor complaint in this case. Definitely barrel heavy, but the flavors are decadent and the base beer is still strong enough to punch some bitter flavors through the barrel. I will say that this beer is basically identical to the XIV, so I’m not sure why there is a separate entry to this every year. Nevertheless, it’s quality, and it’s nice that North Coast does it annually. Thanks again Rutager. Recommended. (1,873 characters)

Pours dark brown with a white head. The aroma is big on Bourbon and oak. The taste is big on alcohol, some bourbon and small vanilla. In the finish a bit of anise almost pokes through. Hot, bourbon, stout, faint ghost bitterness. Overall, a big full bodied stout but a bit more age would help it! (301 characters)

A: Pours an extremely dark woody brown color, near black, with two fingers of dense, soft-looking, light brown head. Head took its time fading into a faint collar which left spotty lacing down the glass.S: Rich notes of bourbon, spice, chocolate, and roast come through. I get scents of toasted marshmallows, wood and vanilla as well. Bourbon is strong yet mellow and smooth smelling. T: Extremely potent and rich flavors bourbon, chocolate fudge, chocolate ice-cream, caramel, candied dates, roasted and toasted malts, and vanilla. The finish is full of sweet bourbon and vanilla, and the aftertaste is roasted, chocolaty, and lingering. M: Full body, smooth and decadent mouthfeel. No trace of alcohol heat whatsoever, but the bourbon lends some great flavor. There a solid bitterness to the brew as well, not unlike the original version. Rich over, with soft and even carbonation. O: One of the most underrated bbl aged stouts is back again and it does not disappoint. Potent and rich, this is a great sipping beer. (1,054 characters)

Appearance - The brew was jet black with an off-white head that left significant lacing on the sides of the glass.

Smell - The booze seems to be present in the aroma, but it lacks the sweetness of bourbon. In comes across like the aroma of a soured stout.

Taste - On the initial taste, I detect notes of black licorice, mild bourbon, and soured dark chocolate. The taste seems to fade rather quickly, almost seeming watery. DId I age this one too long? The aftertaste has the sour mash of bourbon, but lacks the burn. Eventually it just faces into sourness.

Mouthfeel - The beer has the thickness of a stout, despite failing to meet expectations on the taste front. The tongue is well coated with the sourness.

Overall - I understand why I see a lot of these on shelves still. It is a barrel aged stout in name, but missed the mark on most of the high points of the style. (876 characters)

Taste - Sweet, but dark chocolate. Bourbon and vanilla barrel character. It has a chalkiness that isn't desirable but at the same time isn't wholly unpleasant. Just is. Bitter oakiness in the back. Gives it a brief hint of acidity.

Mouthfeel - Very creamy. Medium carbonation. Heavy and boozy, but to be expected.

Overall - I remember really enjoying XIV, but I don't remember this chalky oak. Maybe it was there and I didn't notice it. I still have a bottle, maybe I'll go back it. But not after putting this monster away. Good grief, it's a big 'un. (791 characters)

The beer poured dark brown and somewhat thin for the style. A super tight, creamy and foamy, mocha colored head topped the liquid and faded to a lasting, clingy ring of bubbles. Small patches of drippy lacing trickled along the glass.

Bourbon came through super strong in the aroma. The barrel character was intense. Quite sweet overall with loads of fresh vanilla bean, brown sugar and dark fruit notes. Raisins and plums were most noticeable. Dark chocolate appeared as the beer warmed.

On the front end, the flavor profile was similar to the nose, but the beer finished rather harsh. Intense roasted malt notes came through right away, but they were well tempered by sweet, rich, caramel and brown sugar-like notes. Lots of raisins and dark fruits. Loads of vanilla in the center. The beer turned quite harsh and hot on the back end. The combination of ashy, charred malts and a sharp, whiskey-like booziness on the finish was disappointing, especially considering how well the beer started off. Some woody, tannic notes were also detectible.

The mouthfeel was medium bodied for the style. As is often the case, the barrel seemed to thin out the liquid. A zippy effervescence gave the beer a smooth, supple creaminess. After each sip, the liquid left a sticky film on my lips.

Barrel-Aged Old Rasputin is an intense bourbon-forward beer not for the faint of heart. Of the three anniversary releases I have sampled to date, this one seemed to drink a lot smoother than any of the others. However, even with a year of age, this still finished quite hot. I would love the opportunity to sample this again in another year, when the booziness might be tempered a bit more. (1,810 characters)

The aroma is excellent. Best aspect of the beer. Big vanilla. Bourbon, plum, warm oak, caramel, delicious. Not sure this can be any better.

Taste is excellent as well. For a barrel aged stout, it is less cloying and winey than some other barrel aged beers. I like it like this. Still, it's fruity, roasted malt, bittersweet chocolate baking bars, and relatively slightly hot. Coconut at the end. Nice.

Mouthfeel is good but the drinkability is great although that might just be the alcohol talking at this point.

An excellent barrel aged stout but not sure the 30 dollar price tag is warranted. Bottle looks great and impressive so maybe worth it for a special occasion to share with others. (759 characters)

This poured dark brown black with a khaki foam head that persisted and left a bit of lace. Smells of bourbon, dark chocolate, roasted malt. Delicious. Taste is phenomenal. Bitterness of dark chocolate plays against sweetness of roasted malt, vanilla, dark cherries and figs, caramel, molasses. No noticeable alcohol. Very good flavor. This is a high brow old rassy, for sure. Mouthfeel is medium heavy and creamy. Barrel aging really goes well with the Old Rasputin stock RIS, very enjoyable, wish I had more. (509 characters)

T: Very chocolatey, like a very rich and lightly bitter dark chocolate, roasted malts. Dark fruit, oak, bourbon is there but is definitely not dominating the palate. Some coffee as well. Slightly bitter on the end.

M: Medium to full bodied. Pretty thick and chewy mouth-feel. Seems like more than average carbonation which also has a softer feeling on the tongue.

Overall not surprisingly a very good stout. A very chocolate forward beer. Can't go wrong with this stout, very complex. (797 characters)

to take an already epic brew and turn it into this, is just simply a work of art. there is very little to compare this too, in terms of quality. up there in the abyss, big bad Baptist, kbs conversation, what could really be better? deep deep black color, excited and excitable mocha head, rich and bitter malt notes arise, as do hints of chocolate, good whiskey, vanilla, and char. lots of layers here, flashing and popping, interweaving with one another. not as heavy as some, which is a surprise, especially at this abv level, but its almost more drinkable than the not barrel aged version. its carbonated pretty well too, not syrupy, but definitely thick and way full bodied. not much to improve upon here, except for maybe the exorbitant price. the best thing north coast has ever made, hands down. an absolute must for the stout lover. (840 characters)

Old Rasputin XVExtremely smooth.Moderate contribution from barrel aging allows underlying stout to dominate the flavor. Rich and complex. BB aging adds to the regular version in several ways but, from memory, makes this a tad sweeter and, a tad too sweet Still, great ale. (277 characters)

M: Very thin for the style. No lasting effects except that of weak coffee.

O: Subpar, to the say least. I will never buy this beer again. Uninteresting waste of money. And this will continue get more fusel as it warms. I actually had a 2.7 on this at first and dropped it another 6 points after. (599 characters)